


the night sky is vast and wide

by Losha



Series: the language of lions [2]
Category: Katekyou Hitman Reborn!
Genre: Gen, Minor Canonical Character(s), POV Iemitsu, Yes let's write about That Guy That Nobody Likes, sounds fun
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-10
Updated: 2018-08-10
Packaged: 2019-06-25 12:51:11
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,642
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15641118
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Losha/pseuds/Losha
Summary: Iemitsu is 29 when he inherits the title of Boss of the CEDEF.It’s an honor. It’s also a nightmare.At 29, Iemitsu sits at a table with the Ninth and his sons and wants wants wants.At 29, Iemitsu sits at a table with the Ninth and his sons and regrets regrets regrets.They ask about Japan. They ask about Nana. They ask, more damningly, about Tsunayoshi.“I’m not sure I understand,” Iemitsu says calmly. "My family is dead."





	the night sky is vast and wide

**Author's Note:**

> _What is alive and what isn’t and what should we do about it? Theories: about the nature of the thing. And of the soul. Because people die. The fear: that nothing survives. The greater fear: that something does._ \- Richard Siken, _The Language of Birds_

Iemitsu is 29 when he inherits the title of Boss of the CEDEF.

It’s an honor. It’s also a nightmare.

At 29, Iemitsu sits at a table with the Ninth and his sons and wants wants wants.

At 29, Iemitsu sits at a table with the Ninth and his sons and regrets regrets regrets.

They ask about Japan. They ask about Nana. They ask, more damningly, about Tsunayoshi.

“I’m not sure I understand,” Iemitsu says calmly. “My family is dead.”

“Is that right?” Massimo chortles. Federico exchanges a look with Don Timoteo, and Enrico and Xanxus both scowl at him. Iemitsu’s boss, Saffron, gives him a hard stare. But Iemitsu isn’t intimidated. He blinks placidly at the congregation of the most powerful voices in Vongola and he lies with eyes tinted amber.

“Mm. My family were killed, if you recall, Massimo. So I’m not sure how you expect me to introduce you to them. Did you wish to pay your respects?” He cuts his eyes to Enrico and smiles thinly.

“Do you think we’re stupid, trash?” young Xanxus spits. His voice cracks, just a little, from puberty and the way Massimo only barely bites back a laugh seems to make him even angrier. “You’re not as good as you think you are at hiding that little family of yours.”

“You should tell us the truth about them now,” Enrico says casually, almost friendly if his eyes weren’t so dead set on slicing Iemitsu up. “So we can protect them. It would be a shame if history repeated itself. You tried to hide your family from us before and look what happened.”

“Enrico, that’s enough.” Federico frowns at his older brother, but his censure ends there. 

Federico is the best of Timoteo’s sons in Iemitsu’s mind; he is gentle and calm, understanding and easily persuaded to other points of view, but immovable as any of his brothers if he truly believes in his stance. Not up to being the next Don - that unfortunately is more likely to be Enrico - but he is a good man and one that Iemitsu likes. But they all know he isn’t going to stand against his family for Iemitsu’s sake. For the sake of Iemitsu’s son. For a contender.

Had Tsunayoshi been a daughter, as Iemitsu had prayed, it would not have been so bad. A daughter wasn’t such a threat. A daughter would have been, in fact, seen as a boon within a family with so many male heirs. Vongola would’ve protected a daughter of the First, would’ve helped Iemitsu guard her well, would’ve guided her up and given her treasures and handed her off to the most loyal of their Family. Or, he mentally amends, given her to Xanxus, marrying the two branches into one. If only Tsunayoshi had been born a girl.

Iemitsu was blessed with a son though. A son and a wife who he hid as well as he could, whose protection was that they _weren’t_ protected, that he almost never, ever visited them, and that he never opened his mouth like he’d stupidly done once before. They shouldn’t have been noticed. Except everyone knew who the next External Advisor was going to be and someone had the foresight to go _digging_.

It wasn’t surprising really. Xanxus looked up to his oldest brother something fierce, and Enrico had no love lost for the half-breed Vongola brat his father took in all those years ago. Iemitsu just thought he’d be fully established as the CEDEF boss _before_ it came up. Enrico didn’t usually go after kids. He’d thought Tsuna would be safe for a few years more before the man kicked up a fuss. He didn’t account for Xanxus.

Xanxus pulls a manila envelope out, then the photos from within it, and waves them damningly at Iemitsu. “Don’t even try to lie again, trash. Unlike some people, I know how to do my job right. Would you like to see, Ninth?”

“The photographs of young Tsunayoshi?” Don Timoteo asks, mild as milk. “Yes, I should think that I would. An adorable child truly. It has been some time since I saw his face.”

The whole room freezes. Xanxus hesitates, looking as though he doesn’t know how to react. Beside him, Enrico is too well trained to gape, but the rigidity of his spine as he straightens gives him away. Massimo and Federico both look surprised. Saffron, Iemitsu notices, looks thoroughly uninterested in any of this, and looks at though he would like to take Iemitsu out back and beat him severely for subjecting him to this on what should’ve been his last day on the job.

Iemitsu stands a little taller under that threat and pretends that yes, of course he knew that the Ninth knew about his family, he told him himself, yep, that’s exactly what happened at some point in the past five years, cross his heart. The Ninth is spoon feeding him this opportunity and Iemitsu isn’t an _idiot_.

“The photos, Xanxus,” the Ninth prompts.

And then there are photos laid out on the table one by one as the Ninth takes his time going through them. Photos of his son. Photos of his wife. Photos of Iemitsu with his son and his wife, which, okay, is actually really impressive because Iemitsu hasn’t been to Japan in over a year and he was only there for two days. If Xanxus wasn’t blatantly flourishing in the Varia and wasn’t an absolutely spikey little hellbeast bound and determined to hate everything and anything, Iemitsu might have had to contemplate the steps necessary to snatch him up for the CEDEF.

He’s impressed. He needs to be worrying about his continued existence - and that of his family - and yet, still, _impressed_.

Saffron’s stare feels very judgemental now.

“Remind me, Iemitsu,” Don Timoteo says when he lays the last photograph down, tapping a truly embarrassing picture of Tsuna bawling into Iemitsu’s chest over a yappy little chihuahua at his feet. Iemitsu had considered getting Tsuna a dog for his birthday until _that_ mortifying incident. What kind of kid was scared of puppies? Tsuna. Tsuna was, apparently. And in his time in Japan, Xanxus had apparently made it his life’s mission to get photo evidence of all the _other_ things his tiny little tuna-fish was scared of. (Maybe he should steal him from the Varia anyway. He could give Xanxus to Lal. Lal could straighten him out, surely?) “How old is young Tsunayoshi now?”

“He’ll be five soon, Ninth,” Iemitsu answers promptly.

Enrico breaks into raucous laughter. “Five?! And he’s still acting like that? What kind of prissy weak brat did you squirt out, Sawada?”

Iemitsu presses his lips together tightly.

“Five is nothing,” Massimo grumbles. “Why are we even talking about this? So Sawada has a kid. Big deal. It’s not like he’ll ever learn anything about the mafia way out there.”

“If anyone finds him though, they’ll think we’re as weak as that brat!” Xanxus scowls. “He’s got Vongola blood, but he’s a complete disgrace. I say we take out the trash.”

Federico frowns at his brother. “He’s a _child_ , Xanxus.”

“Yeah,” Massimo smirks, “all children are disappointing. I mean, look at you, Xan.”

“What did you say?! I’ll show you-!!!”

“Xanxus,” Don Timoteo says, and Xanxus cuts himself off. His gaze cuts to Massimo, who grimaces and dips his head in apology. Then the gaze shifts to Enrico, who was looking all too entertained until that point, and finally to Iemitsu.

“Tsunayoshi Sawada has the blood of Vongola in his veins,” he says, “but until Iemitsu came to us, that branch has been left alone to live a life separate from the mafia. Do you intend, Iemitsu, to ever bring your son into our Family?”

“No,” Iemitsu says, because that is all he _can_ say.

The ninth head of Vongola inclines his head, shifts the photographs into one neat pile, and hands them off to Coyote. “Then this matter is finished.”

“But-!” Enrico elbows Xanxus sharply, and the boy falls silent. Neither son looks happy, but their father has spoken and that’s that.

Iemitsu eyes them both, particularly Enrico, and finds it in him to hope that Timoteo does not step down for a long, long time to come. Tsuna will not be safe otherwise.

(Tsuna likely is not safe now.)

“Shall we move on, Ninth?” Saffron asks grumpily. “You promised me a vacation.”

Don Timoteo laughs and inclines his head. “That I did, that I did. I trust there are no further objections to this appointment?” he asks his family.

“As if it matters,” Saffron says, pinning the sons of the Ninth with a dark look. “I picked my heir for the _External_ Advisor position. Formally introducing him to you lot in that role is just a formality.”

“They _do_ have to be willing to work with him,” Timoteo chides his friend, “and respect his authority. But yes, I believe we are done here.” Timoteo inclines his head to Iemitsu and stands. Iemitsu does the same and they cross around the table to meet in the center. “I acknowledge Iemitsu Sawada as the new head of the Consulenza Esterna Della Famiglia. I trust you will do us proud.”

Iemitsu nods and shakes the Ninth’s hand.

And that’s it. They’re done. He’s the boss.

(Well, not _done_. Having Don Timoteo’s approval is just the beginning. Iemitsu still has to go around and formally meet all of Vongola’s allies that fall under the CEDEF’s authority. But Don Timoteo had to be first, the only one to _matter_. The rest will fall in line accordingly, or so Saffron tells him.)

“Stay behind afterwards, Iemitsu,” Don Timoteo says in his ear when they hug. He does not sound as happy as his expression suggests.

Iemitsu swallows and nods.

The matter of Tsunayoshi is not finished at all.


End file.
